Southampton v Sheffield United Preview

Posted on | February 2, 2009 | No Comments

Both of these sides have different goals with Sheffield United aiming for a play off finish, while Southampton are doing all in their power to beat the drop. Saints are currently sat in 23^rd position, three points adrift from safety, while the Blades are in 5^th although just two points separates them from 7^th placed QPR.

It’s been a reasonably solid start for new Southampton boss Mark Wotte who’s seen his side draw both of his games in charge. The first saw Saints claw back two goals to draw 2-2 with Norwich, while the latest was another 2-2 to Swansea in which again they came back from behind. It looks as though Wotte is installing a different type of philosophy into his young team, with previous coach Jan Poortvliet opting for the pretty football approach which didn’t always win games. According to Southampton fans, in recent times their team hasn’t played with the style that’s been with them for so much of the season, but it’s much more effective and the team is creating a lot more chances hence the four goals in the last two games.

As for Sheffield United, it’s not been the best ten days for Kevin Blackwell. His search for a replacement for James Beattie has gone somewhat stale and with the closure of the transfer window looming, it looks doubtful that issue will be rectified. What’s more, United unexpectedly lost at home to Doncaster and then went on to drop points at Preston where they had to settle for a draw. Even though the majority of Blades fans would be delighted to finish in their current position, they know that they need to improve and increase the gap between the sides just outside the top six.  There’s been never any doubt that the Blades possess plenty of talent on paper and Blackwell knows how important it is to regroup his side and make sure they collect maximum points from this one and the next against Steel City rivals Sheffield Wednesday.

As for team news, Southampton will be without Lee Molyneux who misses out after his red card against Swansea at the weekend. Elsewhere, Rudi Skacel is unlikely to feature after handing in a transfer request. Sheffield United on the other hand have very few concerns with captain Chris Morgan the only new absentee. The former Barnsley man strained his hamstring against Preston and won’t feature, although Gary Naysmith and Nick Montgomery are likely to continue in their roles in the team.

Sheffield United may not have won for a few games, but there’s no doubt that they possess a very good squad. With that we see no reason why they can’t get their blip out of their system here and predict a 2-1 win for the Blades.

Related posts:

1. Sheffield United v Norwich Preview
2. Sheffield Wednesday v Sheffield United Preview
3. Sheffield United v Reading Preview
4. Sheffield United v Derby Preview
5. Sheffield United v Crystal Palace Preview

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